Revival Epilogue: Homecoming
by MyAibou
Summary: Back in San Francisco, Yugi and his friends contemplate their futures in light of recent events and an interesting offer from Pegasus. End of series spoilers. JxM, YxT, hints at TTxSxDD, mild MKxRH. Edited to fix the Pharaoh's name. Blame Lucidscreamer.
1. The Tournament Ends

**REVIVAL**

**EPILOGUE: HOMECOMING**

**Summary:** Back in San Francisco, Yugi and his friends contemplate their futures in light of recent events and an interesting offer from Pegasus. **End of series spoilers. **JoeyxMai, YugixTéa, hints at TristanxSerenityxDuke, mild MokubaxRebecca.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own _Yu-gi-oh_ or its characters; Kazuki Takahashi does. I'm just taking them for a joy ride. I promise to put them back when I'm done.

**Rating: **T for mild language, violence, suggestive content.

**Continuity:** Pretty much the same as the other parts of the series. Read those first, starting with the prologue. Yeah, they're really long. I'm wordy that way.

* * *

**1. The Tournament Ends**

When the shipwreck survivors' charter plane from Juneau landed at San Francisco International Airport Tuesday evening, a mob of press was waiting for them, along with family members who had been flown in by the cruise line. Téa's parents, Tristan's mother, Joey and Serenity's mother, Rebecca's grandfather, Duke's father, and Yugi's grandfather and even his mother were all among the crowd that had been ushered into a private waiting area to greet their returning loved ones. Later they were all shuttled to the Four Seasons hotel near Union Square where the cruise line and Industrial Illusions was putting them up for the remainder of their stay in San Francisco.

The next few days was a blurring, confused mass of interviews with law enforcement officials, interviews with the press, interviews with consulate officials from the passengers' respective home countries to get replacement travel documents, interviews with insurance adjusters from the cruise line. Each passenger was given an airline voucher for their flight home and an allowance to buy replacement clothes to last the week or so they would all be required to remain in San Francisco while Homeland Security conducted their investigation, although it seemed they would wrap it up much more quickly than that, authorities having concluded—at least officially—that Evan Haines had no political objectives and had acted alone.

By Friday, after law enforcement had pretty much finished with them but before the press's enthusiasm for the story had completely waned, Industrial Illusions president Maximillion Pegasus made an announcement that Alexander Nelson would be replacing Geoffrey Goradon as the president of the International Duel Monsters Tournament Commission and that the final four duels of the Duel at Sea World Championship Tournament would be held the next day at the Four Seasons. Despite the high profile afforded them because of the media, the finals were anti-climactic and the results a surprise to no one.

In the semi-final duel, Seto Kaiba defeated Joey Wheeler. It was an unexpectedly close duel—there were times when it looked like Wheeler, the undisputed underdog, might actually win, but in the end, Kaiba prevailed by more than a thousand Life Points.

In the second semi-final, Yugi Mutou defeated Mai Valentine. It was a spirited duel, but no one in the crowd ever doubted that the young man known throughout the dueling circuit as the King of Games would win. The only thing remarkable about the match was that it marked the first time Yugi's mother had ever seen him duel.

In the consolation match for third place, Joey Wheeler edged out Mai Valentine. Perhaps the most evenly matched duel of the entire tournament, the only surprise came at the end when despite the near constant exchange of stinging barbs slung back and forth at each other throughout the duel, as soon as Valentine's Life Points clicked down to zero, the two adversaries smiled at each other.

"You owe me dinner, Valentine," Joey told her.

"Fine. But I pick the place. Just make sure you wear a coat and tie."

The final duel for the title of World Championship was the fiercest and yet somehow most anti-climactic of them all. Yugi Mutou defeated Seto Kaiba with only fifty of his own Life Points left, but it was almost as if it were destined to be, as if no matter how close Seto Kaiba came, he could never quite succeed in unseating the King of Games. Even the aftermath was a bit of a letdown; though certainly there was none of the warmth between rivals that Wheeler and Valentine exhibited at the end of their duel, neither was there the expected outburst of rage and bitterness from Kaiba, known throughout the gaming circuit for his intensity, pride, and temper. He merely gave his opponent a tight grimace and a short nod of concession before walking off the field.

At the end of the Championship duel, Pegasus made a flowery speech about the strength of will characterized by all duelists as evidenced not just in their matches but in their survival during the crisis at sea. He announced that he would be holding a special brunch meeting in his suite the next morning to sign contracts with the top four duelists of the tournament to form the first ever Industrial Illusions Professional Dueling Team.

Saturday night, exactly one week after they'd made their way out of the cave, two weeks after they'd first left San Francisco on the _Chrysaor_, Homeland Security cleared all of the passengers to return home.

**

* * *

**

It wasn't until Pegasus's announcement about the Industrial Illusions Dueling Team and the subsequent word from Homeland Security that they could leave that it hit Joey: he was going back to Domino and Mai would most likely remain in San Francisco. From the moment she'd stopped avoiding him on the island, he'd been so rooted in the present, either enjoying how close he and Mai were becoming or focusing on the Shadow Games or beating Evan and Ramesses, that it had never occurred to him that when it was all over they would once again have to go their separate ways. Pegasus's announcement, then, came like a brick to the head, smashing him back to reality. It would be Battle City all over again, only this time he resolved to do it right. If he couldn't be with her, at the very least she would know how he felt. Besides, they still had a few days together anyway. Yugi and his grandfather were going to New York before heading back to Domino, so Joey wouldn't be needed back at the game shop right away and the university had given him an extra week of leave because of the circumstances, so that would give him at least few more days in San Francisco to spend with her. And there was the dinner tonight that he'd won from her in their duel.

After Yugi and Kaiba's duel and all the pomp and circumstance that followed, everyone split up. Mai had disappeared, probably to get ready for dinner. Yugi's mom was flying out early the next morning for some business meeting or something in London and Téa's parents were heading back to Japan tomorrow afternoon so the Gardners and the Mutous were all going to dinner together. Joey was thankful he had other plans; it had all the makings of parents checking out the prospects of future in-laws and he didn't want to be within a hundred miles of it. He wasn't sure where any of the others had gone, but he figured Serenity and their mom were also having dinner. Although he'd been trying to get along better with his mother since Serenity's operation, being around her was draining for him and he wanted no part of that either. His mother probably felt the same, he assumed.

That's why he was surprised and not particularly pleased to find his mother standing in front of the door to the hotel room he was sharing with Yugi, Tristan, and Duke.

"Joseph, there you are, I've been looking for you," she said when he came up the hallway from the elevators. It was still a good hour before he had to meet Mai for dinner.

"Ma? What are you doing here?" he asked, trying not to sound annoyed. "I thought you'd be spending time with Serenity or something."

"No, we're having breakfast together tomorrow. She's having dinner with… oh, I can't remember his name."

Joey glowered. "Tristan?"

"That might be it," she frowned, thinking.

"Duke?" he supplied.

She shrugged. "I forget. It was either the boy with the buzz cut or the boy with the long hair and the dice earring."

No problem. He'd just kill them both.

"Anyway, I wanted to see if you wanted to have dinner," she went on.

This surprised him enough that he stopped contemplating gruesome ways to murder his two friends. "You wanna have dinner with me?" he repeated.

"Yes, Joseph. If that's all right."

"Actually, I have plans."

"Oh, okay," she said, looking a little deflated. "Well, I need to talk with you for a moment."

"Okay," he said, folding his arms and waiting.

"Can't we at least go into your room?"

"Ma, I'm kinda in a rush here," he lied, "so can you just cut to the chase?"

"All right," she said. She fished into her handbag and handed Joey something. "First, before I forget, here's your airline ticket."

"My what?" he asked.

"Your airline ticket. I took those vouchers the cruise line gave you and Serenity and got tickets back to Domino for you. We'll all be on the same flight back to Tokyo and then you and Serenity can go on together to Domino. We leave tomorrow afternoon. I think your friend Téa's parents will be on the same flight, too."

"Say what?" Joey cried, his temper flaring. "You took _my _voucher and decided _for me_ when I'm gonna go back? Did it ever occur to you maybe I planned to stay a little longer?"

Her face darkened. "How much longer?"

"None of your damn business!" he exploded. He snatched the ticket from her and looked at it. Departure was at three o'clock tomorrow afternoon, which meant he'd have to be there by noon or one at the latest since it was an international flight. Less than eighteen hours from now. Less than eighteen hours left with Mai. "It's non-refundable, isn't it? Dammit Ma, now I'm stuck going back tomorrow and I'm not ready to go back yet!"

"Why?" she demanded. "Because of that duelist job with that Mr. Pegasus? Serenity told me all about how you would be working for him since you finished in third place."

He stifled a groan. "Ma, listen—"

"No, Joseph, you listen. I know you like this game and I'm… well, I'm proud of how good you are. Don't look so surprised," she said when he raised his eyebrows, "I _am_ proud of you. You're still my son, you know. But you can't do this. You can't leave your sister in Domino alone. Not when…" She trailed off, knowing she didn't need to finish the thought.

"Not when Dad's there. I get it Ma."

"I'm not sure you do," she said, and then he really lost it.

"What part do you think I don't get? That I'm the sacrifice so Serenity can have a good life? I got that when I was nine, Ma, when you _left me _with a pathetic drunk who could barely find his way home from the bar every night, let alone take care of a kid, so you could get Serenity away, and so you wouldn't have to risk a custody battle and money you needed for her medical expenses."

"Joseph—"

"No," he cut her off, "now _you're _gonna listen. I get how it works, okay? I know my role in this family. And in case you haven't noticed, I'm actually _on board_ with that plan. Serenity always comes first to me and I would never do anything that would stop her from getting her medical degree and there's no way in _hell _I would leave her alone in Domino with that bastard. I'm not stupid. Serenity spoke outta turn. I will be offered the job, but I'm turning it down."

She relaxed at this, but Joey was far from finished. "But here's the thing you need to realize, Ma. It's _my _decision to make, not yours. I'm twenty years old and can decide for myself where I live and what job I will or won't take. You don't get to decide for me. Hell, you gave up the right to make _any_ decisions for me when you gave Dad custody of me—and I know why you did it and I'm glad you did if that's what it took to get Serenity away from him and to get her eyes fixed," he added when she looked like she was going to protest. "And… in the end, my life is better for it. I couldn'ta become the person I am if I hadn't been in Domino, if I hadn't met Yugi, so in the end it all worked out, but that's no excuse for what you did, Ma. And you don't have a clue what I'm giving up here. Not a clue. You think it's just a _game _I like to play, but there's more for me here than you'll ever realize. So understand this: I'm going back to Domino because I love Serenity and I'll do whatever it takes to get her through college and med school, but _you _have no say in it whatsoever."

"Joseph," she said sadly, but he was in no mood to assuage her guilt.

"And don't ever take something that belongs to me again. I'll decide for myself where and when I'm going somewhere."

She looked at him a moment, then sighed. "Fine. I'm sorry if I upset your plans. I just wanted to be sure Serenity would be safe in Domino."

"I will never abandon Serenity," he replied. "Ever. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to meet a friend and I'm late."

**

* * *

**

"You're early. And not in a jacket and tie," Mai noted in a tone of disapproval when he showed up at her hotel room. He'd actually caught her out in the hall, key card in hand, just returning herself. She turned toward him, her back to the door. Like him, she was still in the same casual clothes she'd been wearing when they'd dueled earlier.

"I… let's take a rain check on dinner, Mai. I just wanna talk," he said.

She frowned, all reproach gone from her expression. "What's wrong, Joey?"

He ground his teeth in frustration. "It's my _stupid_ mother, that's what. Never mind that I'm an adult, never mind that she _gave up custody of me _eleven years ago, she still goes and takes my plane voucher and decides _for me_ when I've gotta go back to Japan."

Mai shook her head. "Hold on there. Start from the beginning."

Joey sighed. "My mother took mine and Serenity's plane vouchers and bought our tickets back for Japan. We have to be at the airport by noon tomorrow."

"Oh," she said, but then she shrugged. "Okay, so you have to go back a little sooner than you'd planned. You'll still be able to make that brunch at ten if you eat fast—and I've seen you eat, so no problems there. And then you'll be back in a couple of months for the new job."

Joey closed his eyes and clenched his fists. "Yeah, about that," he began.

"What?" she asked, and he could hear the frown in her voice. When he opened her eyes, he saw it on her face as well.

"The thing is… that job… I… well…" he stammered, "I'm not taking it."

Her eyebrows went up in surprise. "What do you mean you're not taking it? Joey, it's perfect! You're the third best duelist in the _world—_at least until the next tournament when I clean your clock. Dueling professionally, access to all the newest cards, a penthouse apartment, cars, travel. And what about Ramesses? You can't tell me you don't want to be a part of bringing that bastard down."

"I do," he said miserably.

"Then why on _earth _would you not take the job?"

"Serenity," he said simply.

This stopped her. "What about her?"

"Mai, you know my folks don't have any money. My mom's working double shifts just to pay off all the debts from Serenity's medical expenses. The only way Serenity can pay for college is if _I_ pay her tuition, and the only way I can afford it is by working at the university so she can get a huge cut rate."

Mai shook her head. "I don't understand. Can't you just send money back to her? Pegasus has to pay better—"

"Not enough," he interrupted, "not in cash anyway. Lots of perks and benefits, but not enough cash to pay her tuition, especially not without the reduction from my working at the university," he repeated.

"What about all the prize money from Duelist Kingdom?" she protested. "Why didn't your mom use that to pay off her debts?"

"That paid for the last surgery and that's it. Ma was in debt long before that."

"Oh come on Joey, it can't be that impossible. There has to be school loans, scholarships. Serenity's brilliant. There must be dozens—"

"Do you think we haven't looked at every possible way?" he cut her off irritably. "Ever since she decided she wanted to be a doctor we've poured over every scholarship, every loan, everything we could find. She's even going to EMT school so she can work her way through later, but for now, she needs me. And I can't… Mai, I can't back out on Serenity. Not even for this." Even as he said it he wasn't sure if he meant the job, the fight against Ramesses, or the potential for a relationship with her. Probably a combination of all three.

"Besides," he continued, "there's more to it than just the money. Serenity can't live in Domino alone. Not as long as our dad lives there."

For Mai, who had her own father issues, this required no further explanation. "Okay," she said at last. "But why didn't you tell me the truth sooner? Do you really think I'm that fragile?"

"What? No! You're not fragile at all! To be honest, I wasn't thinking about anything past getting off that island once the ship sank. I wasn't trying to hide it from you, I just didn't think about what would happen next." His words sounded weak even to his own ears and he worried that she was thinking it was like Battle City, that he was blowing her off. "Listen Mai, if there was any way, I would stay. I _really _want this." Once again he didn't specify what "this" meant. "But I can't go back on my word to Serenity."

She looked at him a moment, then nodded. "I know how important your sister is to you."

He looked at her and swallowed over a lump in his throat. "I… it doesn't change anything, okay? I want you to know that. I want you to know that I'm not gonna leave you like I did after Battle City. I'll e-mail you, call you. I promise. I—"

"Joey, stop. It's okay, really. It's not like Battle City. I'm not gonna go off the deep end again and I won't forget I have friends. And I won't be alone here. I'll be with Duke, and Yugi…"

"Yugi," Joey repeated, shaking his head slightly. "I…" he stopped, not sure what to say next. "Is that what you think I'm talking about here, worrying that you won't have _friends?_ 'Cause that's not the problem at all. I thought… on the island… I was thinking…" he stammered. He shook his head and tried again. "Am I crazy, Mai, or is there something between us?"

It took her a long time to answer, but he saw her face sort of soften, as if she'd just let go of something she'd been holding tightly inside. "You're not crazy, Joey," she said finally.

He let out a breath of air he hadn't even realized he'd been holding and closed his eyes a moment to let that sink in, but realized the way she'd said it there was a "but" attached. "But?" he prompted, looking at her again.

She sighed. "But five thousand miles is an awfully long distance to figure out exactly what, don't you think?"

It was like a knife stabbing his heart and twisting there. He looked down, no longer able to meet her eyes. "I guess it is," he said, swallowing over an even bigger lump in his throat.

"Hey," she said, putting her key card into the pocket of her skirt and pulling his chin back up with her now free hand so he was looking at her again. Her voice sounded raw, like his felt, but her expression looked resolutely optimistic. "It's probably for the best anyway. Nip it in the bud before things get too messy and we muck up a perfectly good friendship."

He gaped at her, not sure if she really believed her own words. She might as well have just suggested there was still time to keep from falling after he'd already stepped off the edge of a cliff. He blinked and looked up at the ceiling, shaking his head with a rueful smile.

"You're kidding, right?" he said at last, then met her eyes once more. "Don't you get it, Mai? I'm in love with you."

Her eyes got very round and her face slackened. She dropped her hand away from his face and simply stared at him. He gave her another smile. Despite feeling miserable knowing it wouldn't come to anything, he was glad to get that weight off his shoulders and he had to go on, to tell her everything.

"That's what I couldn't tell you after Battle City, why I couldn't call or write. I was in love with you back then, too, but I was just a stupid kid and you were _so _far outta my league. Then… California… all I wanted when that whole mess was over was to see you again. I carried that letter of yours for three years just because you promised I'd see you again. It was something to hang on to, and I wanted to hang on to you so bad I could taste it. But eventually I gave up. I figured you'd moved on and so should I, and then you showed up at that damn ball and oh my God, Mai, I couldn't _breathe_ when I saw you again.

"And now, after everything that's happened, all the _crap _we've gone through, from the ship sinking to that completely wacked Shadow War with Reshef and all the stupid stuff we've been busy with since we've gotten back, none of it matters because all I can look back and see is _you _and the time we got to spend together and the only thing I can think is it was the best couple weeks of my life. All I want is to be with you, and I would do _anything _to make that happen. Anything… except the one thing I can't do, and that's sell out my sister."

He shook his head again in self-deprecation. "I'm still a complete idiot and you are still so far outta my league. But five thousand miles or across the hall, I'm not gonna stop being in love with you any time soon."

She stared at him a moment longer as if she couldn't quite comprehend what he'd said. Then with a growl, she said, "You _are _an idiot," and grabbing a fistful of his shirt yanked him roughly toward her into a feverish kiss, jerking him off balance in the process so that he had to put his hands out on either side of her to catch himself from falling onto her and smashing her into the door. As she pressed against him, everything he'd been holding back for two weeks spilled over like water through a crumbling dam. When he'd regained his balance, he grabbed her shoulders and pulled her closer as she wrapped herself around him, her hands grasping his face, her mouth sucking hungrily on his lower lip.

He ran his hands down her sides, wanting to touch every part of her, then belatedly remembered they were still standing in a public hallway. She started fumbling between them, surprising him for a moment, but then he realized she was trying to fish her key card back out of her pocket. As he was in a better position to get it into the door than she was, he took it from her as soon as she had it in her hand and without breaking the kiss, not even to pause for air, he pushed the key card into its slot.

It took him three tries to get it right, but finally he heard it click home and he opened the door, causing them both to lose their balance and tumble into her room. Stumbling, they collided with a wall directly across from the door that separated the entryway from the main part of the room, Mai's back against the wall and Joey leaning into her. As soon as the door clicked closed behind them, he let his hands explore, feeling every curve, every contour of her body. He kissed her lips, and then her throat, thrilled to hear her moan in response. Then it was his turn to moan as she writhed against him, then let her hands slip across his chest and under his denim jacket, up to his shoulders where she grabbed the collar of the jacket and pulled it downward, tugging it off of him impatiently.

At this point, the small part of him that was still able to think rationally cut through his desire and he pulled back from her. "Mai…" he panted heavily, "stop. I… I don't have anything… I'm not prepared…." He forced himself to take a staggering step back from her. "We should probably slow down anyway," he said with deep regret.

She gave him a ravenous look that nearly melted his resolve. "You sure about that?" she taunted, grabbing him again and pulling him into another long kiss.

Summoning all his will, he pulled back again. "Yeah," he said with conviction he didn't completely feel. "I don't wanna do anything stupid. It's… it's probably best anyway…"

She gave him an admonishing look. "That's too bad, Joey, 'cause how long have you known me? Aren't I _always _prepared?" She showed him the small purse she still had slung over her shoulder. Undoing the catch with one hand, she reached in and pulled out a familiar package with a flourish and a bright smile.

"Oh thank God," he moaned, then abandoning all pretense of self-control, he pushed her back against the wall and pressed against her, covering her mouth with his once more.


	2. Hard Choices

**2. Hard Choices**

Mai Valentine had had many men pursue her. She'd had marriage proposals from rich old men looking for their third or fourth trophy wife and from movie stars looking for someone photogenic to hang on their arm. She'd had much less savory propositions from many others. She'd had men fight duels over her as if she were a prize to be won and she'd had men try to buy her favor with lavish gifts. She'd had more men than she could begin to count tell her that they loved her. She'd never been impressed or moved by any of it and never once had she actually believed any of them. She'd certainly never wanted to say it back.

Until now.

As they stood near the door of her hotel room early Sunday morning, kissing and trying rather unsuccessfully to say good-bye, Joey told her for what must have been the twentieth or thirtieth time that he loved her. Each time it melted her. Each time she believed it absolutely. Each time she wanted to say it back.

Each time the words stuck in her throat and wouldn't come out.

"I love you, Mai," Joey whispered, kissing her neck. She closed her eyes, expecting it to start sounding like an accusation, a challenge. _Say it back or else._ But it never did. It always seemed to come out as something that was a relief, like something he'd held inside too long and was just so glad to not be holding back anymore. No expectations. No demands. Just the truth he needed her to know. If he'd even noticed that she hadn't said it back, he didn't let it show.

_I love you_, she thought, and it overwhelmed her to feel this way about someone, to trust him enough that she actually _could _feel, but the words wouldn't come. "I hate this," is what she said instead, and it came out strangled.

He stopped kissing her throat and looked at her, a wry grin on his face. "I think I've just been insulted."

"No," she rolled her eyes, smiling in spite of herself and giving him a playful backhanded slap on the shoulder, "I don't hate _this._ _So _don't hate this. Could spend many happy hours not hating this."

"I think you just did." He gave her another slow, long kiss.

"There is definitely something to be said for younger men," she breathed.

He jerked back from her. "Younger men? It's not about age, baby, it's all about _talent_."

She arched a skeptical eyebrow at him. "Oh really? I'll be the judge of that."

He grinned. "If you insist."

He kissed her again and this time her legs almost buckled.

"You were saying?" he asked when they came up for air.

"Was I saying something?" she asked, a little dazed.

"You were telling me how _talented_ I am," he answered with a victorious smile.

"You are _such _a pig," she insisted, but then leaned against him sadly. "God, I hate that you have to leave. And that's not a guilt trip," she added quickly when she saw his hangdog look. "I understand why you have to go back to Domino, I really do. I would never ask you to choose between your sister and me. But don't be surprised if she starts getting brochures in the mail from colleges in the San Francisco area."

He nodded, toying with her hair and suddenly looking serious. "So what does that mean? Are we… did we just start something here? 'Cause I get the feeling you're not a big fan of long-distance relationships."

She sighed. "Oh Joey, I don't know. In case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly good with _any _kinds of relationships and five thousand miles is a _really _long way away."

He leaned his forehead against hers. "I don't care. I just want… I don't know, I want to know this isn't going to evaporate the second I walk out the door. I want something to hang on to."

She was aching as much as he was. It almost terrified her how much she wanted this to work. "I don't know if I can do this, but I don't want to just let this go, either. I… I think this could be something… something _amazing_, Joey." When he looked at her hopefully, she sighed again and added, "It's just, I don't know how it can work if we're so far away and we don't even know when we can be together again."

"Tournaments," he began, but she shook her head.

"I'm not talking a week here or there and you know it. I don't know, can we just take it one day at a time? No promises, no expectations? Just… see where we are the next time we see each other?"

It clearly wasn't a very satisfying answer to him, but he nodded. "Fair enough. But you still owe me dinner. Room service on the cruise line's tab doesn't count."

"Why not? You weren't in a hurry to go out last night," she said with an impish grin.

"I ain't in a hurry to go out now, either, but that's beside the point. Next tournament, Valentine, you owe me a dinner. Two when I wipe the floor with you again."

"One lucky duel and your head swells," she said with an exaggerated sigh. He kissed her again and she melted against him, wishing it didn't have to be this way, that they could be together.

It fleetingly crossed her mind that she could bag the whole Industrial Illusions thing and go to Domino with him, but she knew it was a bad idea. She wanted this job, she wanted to duel not just for the penthouse and the cars and the fame but because she knew there was a higher purpose behind it, that she could help stop another psychotic blowhard who didn't care who he hurt on his way to gaining power. From the moment she had been the one to make the final move against Reshef she knew that this was exactly what she wanted to do, what she _had_ to do. She just wished Joey could be there with her, fighting the good fight, too.

But there was more than one way to be a hero, and sacrificing what he wanted so that his sister could get the education she deserved was one of them.

When he broke off their kiss, he looked at her gloomily. "How is it possible to be so deliriously happy and so completely miserable at the same time?"

"If you figure it out, let me know."

He groaned in frustration. "I really gotta go. I have to leave for the airport in a few hours and I haven't packed or anything."

"What can you possibly have to pack? Except for your deck, your duel disk, and the new clothes you bought here, everything you have is at the bottom of the Pacific."

"I know," he said, "but still. You have that brunch to go to in a couple of hours…" He trailed off, pain in his eyes. "God, I don't wanna go, Mai. I just wanna be with you."

"I know," she told him.

"Why don't you come to the airport? Then you can say good-bye to Serenity, too. I know she's gonna really miss you. Not as much as I will, but…."

"Oh no, Joey, I don't think so. This is hard enough as it is. I don't think I can do the public airport good-bye thing, not when I have no idea when I'll see you again, and I can't go through this twice. It's… it's too hard."

He nodded. "Okay. Then… just like ripping off a band-aid. Quickly." He kissed her one more time. "I'll call you when I get to Tokyo, and again when I get to Domino, okay? And I'll e-mail all the time. It worked for Téa and Yugi the last couple of years."

"Okay," she said, blinking so her eyes wouldn't tear up.

"Okay." He opened the door. "I love you, Mai."

_I love you too. You have no idea how much I love you. _But the words still wouldn't come. All she could say was, "Good-bye, Joey.

* * *

It was about eight o'clock Sunday morning when Téa left the room she was sharing with Serenity and Rebecca and headed a few doors down the hall to Yugi's room. Serenity had gone to breakfast with her mother and Rebecca was with her grandfather and since there was still a couple of hours before Yugi had to be at that brunch meeting with Pegasus, she thought they might finally be able to get a little bit of time alone together, the first time since they'd left the island. She stopped abruptly, however, when she found Yugi, Tristan, and Duke sitting on the floor in the hallway in front of their room, all of them wearing pajama bottoms and t-shirts.

"So… any reason you've moved the party out to the hallway?" she asked as she approached them.

Duke held up one finger. "Wait for it." She paused looking at him expectantly, but he said nothing more, just sat with his head cocked toward the door of their room.

Then suddenly from inside the room she heard a woman's voice explode, "Honestly, you are _impossible!"_ Téa recognized the voice as belonging to Serenity.

"_I'm _impossible? _I'm _impossible!" came a bellowing response. Joey. "_You're _impossible!"

Duke pointed at the door and nodded, indicating Téa's question had been answered.

She raised her eyebrows. "What's that all about?" she asked, sitting down cross-legged next to Yugi. He put his arm around her and she settled contentedly against his shoulder.

"Joey decided to turn down Pegasus's job offer and go back to Domino," Yugi answered her. "Apparently Serenity isn't too thrilled with this plan."

As if in confirmation, Serenity screamed, "What are you, brain-damaged? You are _so _not throwing your life away like this!"

"Apparently," Duke said wryly.

"He's _what?"_ Téa asked, surprised as Joey roared something she couldn't quite make out behind the door. "Why wouldn't he take the job? It's perfect for him! And he's gotta want to help nail Ramesses!"

"He says the cash pay isn't enough for Serenity's tuition, not without the break she gets from him working at the student union," Yugi replied. "That and he doesn't want her living in the same city with their dad without him."

Duke's face darkened. "Okay, I knew they guy was a jerk, but is he some kind of pervert too?"

"Nah, nothing like that," Tristan said. "Near as I can piece together from the little Joey would talk about it, I think his dad had issues with Serenity 'cause she was born with all those eye problems or something. Blamed her for everything that was wrong with his life. I think that's one of the reasons Joey's mom took Serenity without even trying to fight for custody of Joey—she didn't want to risk him even getting visitation rights or anything because he was such a bastard to her."

"Yeah, that's pretty much what Joey told me," Yugi confirmed.

"Dude, that's seriously messed up," Duke shook his head.

"No kidding," Téa agreed, shuddering. For not the first time since she'd met Joey, she found herself incredibly grateful for her own parents.

"Though I don't know," Tristan went on, "I think Joey's making a bigger deal of this than it needs to be. I think she'd figure out a way to get through school and stay away from her dad even without Joey's help. The girl's pretty level-headed."

From inside the room, Serenity shrieked, "How can you be such an _idiot_?"

"Or not," Duke said.

"Man," Tristan whistled. "I use to wonder how someone as sweet as Serenity could be related to a hot-tempered big mouth like Joey. Suddenly I'm seeing the connection."

"How long has this been going on?" Téa asked.

Tristan looked at his watch. "About half an hour. Scared the crap out of us when she started banging on the door a little after seven-thirty after she got back from breakfast with her mom. Woke us all up. Well, except for Joey," he added, his tone suggestive.

Téa gave him a skeptical look. "_Joey_ was up early? He'd sleep past noon every day if he could."

The boys all exchanged looks. "Uh… not up early; up _late_, actually. He'd just come in," Tristan replied.

"And if I'm not mistaken, Mai's not sharing a room with anyone," Duke finished with a salacious grin.

_Lucky her,_ Téa thought with a twinge of envy.

"Oh, leave him alone," Yugi admonished Tristan and Duke. "Let him have some privacy. This has to be really hard, things finally working out with Mai only to have to be separated again."

Téa swallowed, trying not to think about how she and Yugi were in the exact same predicament.

"Oh please," Tristan snorted. "You're the private one, not him. Believe me, if he weren't so bummed out about having to leave today I guarantee he would've woken us all up just to brag."

Yugi shook his head. "I don't know, Tristan. This is different than the other girls he's gone out with. She really means a lot to him."

"Well, I definitely have never seen him this hung up on anyone before," Tristan conceded. "But speaking of long-distance relationships, what are you two gonna do?"

Yugi and Téa looked at each other. "Well," Yugi replied, "From here we're going back to New York together so I can _finally _see her dance on Broadway."

"Off Broadway," she corrected. He rolled his eyes indicating it made no difference to him.

"How'd you talk your grandpa into not going straight back to Domino?" Tristan asked.

"I invited him to come with us," Téa answered.

Tristan laughed. "That'd work. I think he's got a bigger crush on you than Yugi does."

"Hey, that's my _grandfather_ you're talking about!" Yugi protested. "That's just _wrong_," he shuddered dramatically and Téa laughed. Recovering, he continued, "Anyway, after a few days in New York, Grandpa and I will go back to Domino and Téa comes back in August. Hopefully I won't have to be back here any sooner than the start of fall semester and we'll have maybe a week or so together there."

"And then I'm gonna try to get another student visa and save up some money so that by next year or maybe if I'm really lucky, spring semester, I can transfer out here," Téa finished.

"Well, that's not too bad, one more year," Duke said.

Téa and Yugi shared a look that said to both of them, one more year apart seemed like a lifetime. She was already dreading the moment Yugi would leave New York.

But then Yugi sighed. "Yeah, I guess at least it's a plan. Who knows how long Joey's gonna be apart from Mai."

They heard Serenity scream in frustration. "I'll drop out and go back to Tokyo before I let you do this, Joey Wheeler!"

"Over my dead body!" Joey shouted back.

"Don't you tempt me!"

Tristan shook his head. "How long he'll be apart from Mai is kind of a moot point if Serenity kills him."

"Yeah. Who knew she could be so scary," Duke said.

"Well, if she's too much for you, maybe you should stop hitting on her," Tristan suggested.

"I didn't say that. I like fiery women," Duke shot back. "And if _you _hadn't invited yourself along on _our _dinner date last night—"

"_Your _date?" Tristan gaped. "_You're _the one who muscled in on _our _date—"

Téa rolled her eyes as the two of them exchanged barbs over who had actually had a date with Serenity last night and which of them would be better suited for her overall. Deciding it was the perfect time to make her escape with Yugi, she leaned over to him and said quietly, "Let's get out of here before these two cavemen bring out their clubs. There's no one in my room right now."

Yugi nodded eagerly, his cheeks reddening slightly, and she had to bite her lip to not laugh at how easy it was to embarrass him.

As they stood up, a bellhop approached. Seeing them clustered around the door, he stopped. "Uh… are you in room 1138?"

"Yeah, that's us," Yugi replied. Tristan and Duke stopped bickering and looked up.

The bellhop looked at some envelopes he was holding. "I'm looking for… Joey Wheeler, Tristan Taylor, Duke Devlin, and, uh…" he squinted, "Yuh-gy Mutt-ow?" he tried.

"Yugi Mutou," Yugi corrected with a sigh as Tristan and Duke snickered. "That's me. And they're Tristan and Duke," he indicated with a tilt of his head.

"We can take the one for Joey, too," Tristan added, still grinning at the mangling of Yugi's name. "He's inside, but I don't think you wanna go in there." He nodded his head toward the door where more shouts could be heard from within.

The bellhop eyed the door warily. "Yeah, I think I'll just leave it with you." He handed out the cards while Yugi reached for his wallet only to remember he was still in his pajamas.

"Uh… I guess I need to go back in there to get my wallet," he said, but he didn't move as the sounds of Serenity and Joey's fight continued.

"Yeah, good luck with that," Duke said.

"Oh, honestly, what a bunch of babies!" Téa rolled her eyes. "Just let me take care of it," she added, reaching into her purse for a few dollars to tip the bellhop.

When he'd handed out the four envelopes, she saw he still had a few more. "Are any of those for room 1132?" she guessed. "I'm Téa Gardner and my roommates are Rebecca Hawkins and Serenity Wheeler."

Shuffling through the envelopes, he nodded. "Yep. I have one for each of you."

"I can just take those if you'd like. No one's in the room right now."

He handed her the three envelopes and then she gave him the tip and he left.

"Good thing your girlfriend had her purse on her, _Mutt-ow_," Tristan mocked as he tore open his envelope.

Duke sniggered. "I always thought Joey was the mutt…."

Téa coughed. "So what's in the envelopes?" she asked Tristan and Duke as she opened hers. The two boys stopped harassing Yugi and looked at their cards.

"Huh," Tristan said with a quizzical look. "It's an invitation to Pegasus's brunch."

"Mine, too," Duke confirmed. "I thought that was just for the top four duelists."

Téa opened hers and saw that it, too, was an invitation to the brunch. "Seems like we all got one. I wonder if Pegasus found out something more about Ramesses. I—"

Before she could finish the thought, the room to the guys' room slammed open and Serenity stormed out, muttering invectives about Joey. She blew past them without stopping and headed toward her room.

Just as the door to the room she'd just left was about to click shut, it banged open again and Joey leaned out. "Don't you walk out on me, Serenity, we're not done yet!"

"Oh yes we are!" she shouted back. She jammed her keycard into her door then wrenched it open and stomped through it, slamming it shut behind her.

"WOMEN!" Joey screamed, then slammed his own door shut without acknowledging his friends' presence.

Téa, Yugi, Tristan, and Duke blinked at each other and then Téa sighed. "I'll take Serenity. You guys take Joey." _So much for time alone with Yugi._

"Okay. We'll see you at Pegasus's suite, then," Yugi said sounding as resigned as she felt.

**

* * *

**

Joey had his newly-purchased replacement suitcase open on one of the beds and was violently throwing clothes into it while mumbling curses when Yugi, Tristan, and Duke entered the room.

"You okay, Joey?" Yugi asked.

"Oh yeah, I'm fan-freaking-tastic," he grumbled, tossing his duel disk into the suitcase with a crash. "After the best night of my entire pathetic existence I had to say good-bye to the best thing that ever happened to me for a sister who thinks I'm an idiot and is now threatening to drop out of school. I'm just _fabulous, _how are you?"

"You know, bro, did it ever occur to you maybe Serenity's right?" Tristan asked. When Joey shot him a poisonous look, he mumbled, "Okay, maybe not."

Yugi tried again. "So what's gonna happen now? With you and Mai, I mean."

Joey stopped the assault on his suitcase and flopped down on his back beside it. "Man, I wish I knew. Me, I don't wanna be with anyone else no matter how far away she is, but she… she doesn't like the distance. Wants to take it one day at a time. Not that I can blame her. Domino and San Francisco are _awfully _far apart."

"Tell me about it," Yugi agreed miserably, sitting down beside Joey.

Joey looked up at him. "That's right, you—oh _man_!" He slapped both hands to his forehead. "I just realized. I'm gonna be with Téa and you're gonna be with Mai. How's that for irony?"

"Hey that's right," Duke said. "You two should just trade girlfriends and be done with it."

"I don't think so," Yugi and Joey said together, then both chuckled.

"Tell you what, Yuge. I'll look out for Téa for you if you'll scare away any guy who comes within, say, fifty miles of Mai."

"Oh yeah, that'll work. I'm just _so _threatening," Yugi joked.

"You can be when you wanna be," Joey said, completely serious this time, and Yugi realized he was talking about the part of him that was still the Pharaoh. He was reminded of how Joey had had to stop him from going after Ramesses on his own and he thought with some unease that if he had internalized Atem's personality along with his memories, then he'd have his weaknesses as well as his strengths.

Not wanting to pursue that line of thinking, he said bracingly, "I think it'll work out in the end, Joey."

"I hope you're right, 'cause I can't stand the thought of not being with her."

"Okay, at the risk of having you bite my head off," Tristan said slowly, "don't you think you should at least consider taking the job with Pegasus?"

Joey sat up and eyed his friend. "You know, for a guy who's spent the last two weeks chasing after my sister, you're pretty quick to suggest I just ditch her."

"Dude, would you chill? I'm not suggesting you ditch her. I'm suggesting that maybe, just _maybe _she's smart enough to take care of herself. I'm sure she can find a way to pay for school even if you do come out here."

"Hey, I'm all for that. As soon as it's a done deal—along with a way to keep our dad away from her—then I'll consider taking the job with Pegasus, and not a second before."

"If you don't take it now there might not be a chance to consider it later," Tristan argued.

"Not a second before," Joey said firmly.

Tristan shrugged. "It's your life, I'm just trying to help. Oh, here's your invitation to the brunch anyway," he added, holding the envelope out to Joey.

"Toss it. No point in me going."

"Joey, I think you should go even if you're not taking the job," Yugi said. "It isn't just the top four who got invitations. All of us got one."

"Yeah, even me and Téa and Serenity," Tristan confirmed, holding up his own envelope.

"Well, if _Serenity's _going, then of _course _I wanna go. I just can't wait to have her scream at me some more," Joey sneered.

"I still think you should go," Yugi repeated. "He might have found out something important about Ramesses."

"So? It's not like I can do anything about it from Domino," he said bitterly.

Yugi sighed. "That's not true and you know it. It all _started _in Domino. Come on, Joey, just come to the meeting."

"Think of the food," Duke coaxed him. "Knowing Pegasus, it'll be an awesome spread."

"I'm not hungry."

They all exchanged glances. "_You're_ not hungry? Dude, you've got it _bad_," Tristan voiced what they were all thinking.

Joey blew out a puff of air, momentarily pushing his bangs off his face. "Guys, you don't get it. Mai's gonna be there. It took me half the morning just to say good-bye to her. I… I don't think I can go through that again."

Yugi reached out and put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "I know it's hard, Joey. Believe me, I know. I'm dreading saying good-bye to Téa, too. But you're a part of this. We _need _you."

Joey looked at him, chewing on his lip, then growled in frustration. "Okay, fine, you win. But it'll be your fault if I don't leave that suite alive. Reshef the Dark Being I can handle, but Serenity when she's pissed?" He shuddered theatrically.


	3. The Meeting

**3. The Meeting**

A little before ten, showered and changed, the four men headed towards Pegasus's suite on the twelfth floor. The suite was on the corner down the hall from the elevators, the door propped open with Croquet standing just outside to make sure only invited guests gained admittance. As they approached the door, Mai, whose room was also on the twelfth floor, appeared around the corner from the opposite direction. She and Joey both stopped when they saw each other. Joey's heart twisted at the startled expression on her face.

"Joey! What are you doing here? I… I thought you were leaving." There was a note of hope in her voice, making him feel like the world's biggest heel. _I knew I shouldn't have come._

"We'll meet you inside," Yugi said quickly as he, Tristan, and Duke beat a hasty retreat.

"I am leaving," Joey confirmed with regret. "I just… I guess all of us were invited, not just the top four duelists, so I thought I should see what's up before I go."

"Oh," Mai said dully.

"Listen, I didn't mean to make it harder. I really wasn't planning on coming, but Yugi talked me into it."

"Okay," she nodded. He didn't know what else to say at the moment, so they stood across from each other in awkward silence until she finally broke it by saying, "Well, then, I guess we should go in."

"Yeah, I guess we should."

Before he could turn toward the door, he heard a voice call out with an odd forced quality, "Hey Joey!" He turned to see Téa and Serenity approaching from behind him. His eyes met Serenity's and she glared at him while Téa nudged her forward and muttered, "Go talk to him."

Serenity said nothing, however; she just glared at Joey and marched past him, pointedly ignoring him. "Hello Mai," she said as she breezed between them, Téa on her heels.

"Oh that's real mature!" he shouted after Serenity.

"I'll keep working on her," Téa whispered as she went past.

"Whatever," Joey growled. He then saw Mai giving him a wry look.

"What was _that _all about?" she asked.

"Let's just say she doesn't agree with my decision to stay in Domino." Mai raised her eyebrow at him and she looked amused. "You think it's funny?" he grumbled.

"No," she said, screwing on a serious expression.

"You try having Serenity scream at you for half an hour. You think _I've _got a temper…."

"Do you want me to talk to her?"

He considered this. "That depends on whose side you're on."

She paused, thinking. "Good point. I'll just stay out of it."

They finally went into the suite. Besides Yugi, Tristan, Duke, Téa, and Serenity, Kaiba and Mokuba were there as well. Kaiba was standing off to the side, his arms crossed and an impatient scowl on his face. The rest of them were gathered around two buffet tables opposite the door. As Duke had predicted, it was an elaborate spread of food including scrambled eggs, eggs benedict, sausage, bacon, roasted potatoes, smoked salmon, a cheese platter, several varieties of fruit, and even a man in a puffy chef's hat manning a waffle and omelet bar. Joey, however, found himself with no appetite, so instead of heading for the buffet, he went toward the sofa and chairs that were arranged in a semicircle around a large plasma screen television in the living area of the suite.

"Joey? You're not getting breakfast?" Mai asked.

"Not hungry," he said.

"Wow," she said, taken aback. "You should eat something, though. You've got a long flight."

"Why do you think I'm not hungry?"

A small commotion at the door interrupted them. Joey turned to see Rebecca there with her grandfather and, surprisingly, Yugi's grandfather. It was the latter who was causing the disturbance.

"I'm sorry, sir, only invited guests allowed," Croquet was explaining as he blocked Yugi's grandpa from entering.

"You're letting him in!" Grandpa protested, indicating Professor Hawkins.

"He's the legal guardian of the minor Rebecca Hawkins and an _invited guest,"_ Croquet insisted.

"Grandpa?" Yugi asked, approaching the door with a plate full of eggs, sausage, and potatoes. "What are you doing here?"

"I know Pegasus may have changed his stripes over the last few years, but if my grandson is going to be taking a job with him, I want to hear all the details first."

"I'm not a kid anymore, Grandpa!" Yugi objected.

"It's all right, Croquet, let Dr. Mutou join us," a silky voice cooed. They looked to see that Pegasus had entered from a side door. "He has a vested interest in what is happening as well."

Grandpa shot Croquet a smug look of victory as he followed Rebecca and Professor Hawkins into the suite. He came up to Yugi and Joey and put his arms around both of them. "No way I'm letting my boys sign some contract without hearing what they're getting themselves into first."

Joey found himself pleased to be included as one of Grandpa's "boys." Swallowing hard, he said, "Thanks, Gramps, but you can't get rid of me that easily. I'm gonna stay at the Kame Game Shop if it's okay with you."

Grandpa gave him a surprised look. "You know you're always welcome at the shop—and in our home, Joey."

"Please, everyone, help yourselves to some breakfast. I'd like to get started in about fifteen minutes," Pegasus announced.

"Good. I don't want to waste any more of my time," Kaiba complained.

Everyone but Kaiba and Joey enjoyed the buffet, although Joey noticed that Mai wasn't eating much and he wondered if it was for the same reason he wasn't hungry.

After about fifteen minutes, the waffle and omelet chef was excused and Pegasus called for the meeting to begin. They all settled onto the sofas or chairs in the living room. Yugi's grandfather sat between Yugi and Joey and Mai sat down on Joey's other side. Téa sat beside Yugi, then Tristan, Serenity, Duke, Professor Hawkins, Rebecca, and Mokuba. Behind Mokuba, across from Mai, Kaiba remained standing. Pegasus stood in front of the television set so that he was the focal point.

"Now before we begin, for the benefit of the good Doctors Hawkins and Mutou, do we need to do a recap of the events of the previous week?"

Joey leaned back and shot Yugi a look behind Grandpa's back. How much had Yugi told him? Yugi didn't seem too concerned, however. Either he'd already filled in his grandfather or he didn't mind if he knew the truth.

"If you're asking if we know about the real reason behind the ship's sabotage, then yes, my granddaughter and Yugi have filled us in," Professor Hawkins answered for the both of them.

"That's right," Grandpa agreed. "We heard about this Ramesses fellow and how he wants to reopen the Shadow Realm," thereby answering Joey's question about whether or not he knew.

"And that he had quite a supply of Orichalcos stones," Professor Hawkins added.

"Good," Pegasus said brusquely, "then we'll move right ahead. First, a report on the follow-up from our little side trip into the Shadow Realm. You of course have all heard the official version of what happened? Evan Haines was an obsessed psychotic maniac who acted alone. Through threats and intimidation and apparently an impressive store of explosives, he coerced us into a tournament of his own concoction in order to crown himself the champion duelist. He was defeated and threatened to blow up the entire island but was subdued by the combined efforts of those here in this room. Somehow in the melee, he suffered some sort of trauma and is now in an irreversible coma. You will note that with the exception of the references to explosives on the island and the determination that Mr. Haines acted alone, the story is fairly accurate… from a certain point of view."

"Another Ben Kenobi wannabe," Joey muttered.

"As for matters not on the official version of events, you also may have guessed that you succeeded not just in defeating Ramesses and his vizier, but in closing the Shadow Realm again. In addition, even as we speak, a demolition team personally commissioned by myself is hard at work destroying the Chamber of Wedju and particularly the Orichalcos stones therein. But don't deceive yourselves into thinking the task is finished. The crucial opening battle is won, but the war is far from over. The vizier is gone, but the pharaoh is still out there somewhere and I am much mistaken if he doesn't have backup plans for his backup plans. Until we discover who he is and stop him once and for all, we can safely assume he _will _gain access to more Orichalcos stones. He _will_ open the Shadow Realm again. It's a question not of _if,_ but _when _and_ how._ And most importantly, when he does, how do we stop him?

"I think it's safe to say you all understand by now that there is much more to this Industrial Illusions professional dueling team than just promoting Duel Monsters, although that is a big part of it. I _am _a businessman, after all."

"And so am I, so why don't I save us both some time, Pegasus," Kaiba interjected. "I'm not interested."

Pegasus chuckled merrily. "Kaiba-boy, do you take me for a fool? On second thought, don't answer that. But seriously, you didn't think I actually imagined you _would _take the position, did you? That's why I invited Miss Hawkins. As the duelist who finished in fifth place, she is next in line to replace you."

_Wonder who's gonna replace me? _Joey thought. Officially, Zigfried von Schroeder would be sixth place, but he couldn't imagine that priss would be any more excited about the offer than Kaiba was, and certainly Joey wouldn't wish working with him on Yugi, Mai, and Rebecca. Ziggy's brother Leon placed seventh; he wouldn't be so bad. Jacques Rousseau was eighth and that was out of the question.

"Then why am I here?" Kaiba demanded.

"For the same reason the others who will not be dueling for me professionally are here," Pegasus replied. "Because we all have a stake in this, and as someone whose business depends heavily upon licensing agreements with Industrial Illusions—"

"I've heard this song before, Pegasus. Skip to the grand finale."

"Patience, Kaiba-boy, all in due time," Pegasus sighed. "Back to what I was saying. As I explained in our meeting on the island the day we first landed, this entire tournament was a test to create new warriors to fight a new kind of war. And given what happened down in that cave, I think we all can agree you have passed with flying colors. Five duelists in this room made the cut. Five duelists battled Evan and myself and our friends Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood while we were, shall we say, under the influence. As Kaiba-boy has already indicated he is not interested in my offer, I would like at this time to officially extend the invitation to join the first ever Industrial Illusions Professional Dueling Team to Yugi Mutou, Joseph Wheeler, Mai Valentine, and Rebecca Hawkins."

Joey gave himself a moment to bask in the sense of accomplishment he felt at getting this offer. He'd done it all on his own, too, no help from Yugi this time. Third place in the _world_, with only the two Untouchables, Yugi Mutou and Seto Kaiba, besting him. Pretty damn good for a punk kid who five years ago couldn't tell a trap from a spell card. Then with deep regret, he opened his mouth to decline the offer, but before he could get a word out, Pegasus went on.

"The start date will be September 1st, although your accommodations will all be ready in early August so that those of you who are students and need to return at the end of August for the fall term can do so. I will of course arrange for all the appropriate work and student visas for Yugi-boy and Joseph. As for Miss Hawkins, because she is a minor, I will need consent of her guardian, but as a high school graduate, she is not subject to other child labor restrictions.

"Now, before we get to any more boring details, I would like to remind you that you four, along with Kaiba-boy—refusal of the position notwithstanding—will be front line warriors. You will be the ones who take the battle into the Shadow Realm when Ramesses resurfaces."

"Excuse me," Professor Hawkins interrupted, "but it sounds quite dangerous."

"Of course it is," Pegasus confirmed, looking a little puzzled as if he couldn't quite understand why the professor would point out the obvious.

"Naturally I'm concerned about my granddaughter's safety," Professor Hawkins said by way of explanation.

"Grandpa! I can take care of myself!" Rebecca protested.

"More to the point," Pegasus said, "refusing the position won't keep her—or any of you—out of danger. Each of our previous experiences with the Shadow Realm, and apparently the Orichalcos, have made us all targets for Ramesses whether or not we continue to go after him."

Professor Hawkins nodded thoughtfully and Pegasus went on.

"Now where was I? Oh yes, the four duelists. Besides your dueling skill, which is the explicit reason for your employment, each of you brings unique talents to the table that is implicit in your position. Yugi Mutou is a student of Egyptology and has excellent leadership skills. I expect him to be the head of our little team. Joseph Wheeler has a physical presence that will help in security matters—and by that I mean your street fighting skills might come in handy, Joseph," he clarified and Joey scowled at the implication that he wouldn't have understood otherwise. "In addition to that," Pegasus continued, "you work quite well with Yugi-boy as an effective second-in-command."

Joey started at this. _Me?_ he thought with amazement, looking across Grandpa at Yugi. His friend nodded at him with a small smile.

"Mai Valentine is skilled with, well, shall we say, subterfuge and… alternative methods for accomplishing her goals." Joey cocked an eyebrow at her and she snorted. Pegasus continued, "And if I'm not mistaken from the reports I've seen from your time working with Dartz, you're not bad in a physical fight, either."

Mai shrugged. "I learned some kick-boxing and some trick motorcycle riding. Nothing too fancy."

Now it was Joey's turn to snort. "Seemed pretty fancy to me."

"I encourage you to hone those skills when you're in my employ," Pegasus said. "They may also come in handy."

He turned to Rebecca. "And of course, young Rebecca Hawkins brings her considerable intellect and technical skills to the table.

"However, as you all discovered personally and I'm sure Corporal Taylor can attest after two years in the armed forces, front line soldiers cannot operate in a vacuum. A successful campaign depends not just on warriors, but on an infrastructure to support the warriors. Or to put it in terms of Duel Monsters, you can't win a duel with powerful monsters alone. You need traps and spells. You need special effect monsters. You need a cohesive team.

"It occurs to me that on both the overt and covert levels of the professional dueling team, a good deal of support and backup will be needed if we are to succeed. Now of course there are the good brothers Kaiba. who if I'm not mistaken will be remaining in San Francisco for the foreseeable future."

"Your point, Pegasus?" Kaiba asked, which Pegasus took as confirmation.

"As partners with Industrial Illusions in the game of Duel Monsters, I expect Kaiba Corp to work with my duelists, grant them access to new breakthroughs in Duel Disk technology. You will, I assume, continue to compete in various tournaments."

"Depends on my schedule and I don't see where it concerns you."

"Well, whether you compete or not is of no importance, but as the CEO of Kaiba Corp, I expect you to take a very personal role in the use of Duel Disk technology in tournament play—you and your heir apparent both—and be available to my dueling team for whatever might arise."

"Last I checked, I don't work for you," Kaiba sniffed.

"No, but there are those licenses…"

"Let's get one thing straight. You cannot hold those licenses over my head like they're liver snaps and I'm a dog waiting to do tricks for them. The current state of Duel Monsters is as dependent on Duel Disk technology—and promotional tie-ins from things like Kaiba Land—as Duel Disks and Kaiba Land are dependent on your licenses. We're a _cooperative_ venture, Pegasus, which makes us _equals._"

"Then as an _equal, _may I assume you understand the stakes here? And I'm not talking about _business."_

"I understand that whoever this Ramesses is, he's a psychotic sociopath whom _you're_ completely incapable of dealing with. And I hardly expect the geek squad you assembled to do much better on its own, either. So if your question is will I be around to help bring him down, the answer is yes. But not because you're holding Duel Monsters licenses over my head and not because of any saccharine concept of team spirit. I'll bring him down because he messed with me and he messed with my company, but most of all, he messed with my brother. And no one gets away with messing with my brother."

"Well, whatever your reasons—explicit or implicit—so long as you learn to work well and play nicely with others, then I'm satisfied."

Pegasus turned away from Kaiba and rested his gaze on Duke. "Duke Devlin also is someone with which I have current business dealings. I expect your work with Dungeon Dice Monsters to continue and for you to accompany the Industrial Illusions duelists to tournaments to promote the product. I also think that, like Joseph, you're a cunning street fighter."

He steepled his fingers under his chin before going on. "Now of course, all of these street fighters and kick-boxers are no substitute for real security, and I demand the best for my duelists. That is why I plan to hire a security expert with a military background. Someone, who for instance, has trained with the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force in the Military Police."

Joey's eyes widened and he saw Tristan sit up straight as Pegasus pretended to muse, "Hmmm, if only I knew someone with those qualifications. Oh wait! Corporal Taylor, _you're _a member of the Military Police with the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force. I couldn't by any chance interest you in the position, could I?"

Tristan looked stunned. "_Me?_ I still have a year left on my tour of duty."

"Oh my, now that _is _a problem, isn't it," Pegasus cooed, and Joey knew instantly he had already worked something out. He certainly had enough money and connections. "I don't suppose it would help convince you if I told you that, should you agree to come and work for me, I have already arranged to have you moved from active duty to reserve status and for you to complete your training requirements for reserve status in cooperation with the United States Army by providing Japanese cultural and language training at the Army Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center in Monterey, California one weekend a month. You will either do your yearly two-week training requirement at Fort Irwin in eastern California or back in Japan, at the discretion of the Japanese GSDF."

"You can _do_ that?" Tristan gaped.

Pegasus gave him a silky smile. "Of course I can, along with the appropriate visas, naturally. Now, don't answer now. I don't expect anyone to make such a big career decision on the spot, and I want to talk about some other positions I have available. Miss Gardner?"

Now it was Téa's turn to start. "Me?"

"Of course, you. I find myself in need of an administrative assistant to work directly with the duelists, someone who is well versed in gaming and tournament culture in general and Duel Monsters in specific, but I don't want someone who is him- or herself a competitive duelist because then he or she will be wanting to compete rather than handle the details. Despite my rather large staff, I'd prefer to go with someone who already works well with the four duelists in question—you know how temperamental duelists can be. Again, work and student visas will be provided, yadda yadda ya, if you're interested in the position. No no no, don't answer now," he added when she opened her mouth to say something.

About two seconds before Pegasus moved on, Joey saw where this was going. There was only one person left in the room, with the exception of the two grandfathers, that had not yet been connected to Pegasus's plan yet. Serenity realized it, too, because he saw her leaning forward looking at Pegasus with keen interest.

"And that, of course, leaves me with one more position to fill. I need a medic, someone with some basic emergency medical training to travel with my duelists."

Mai nudged Joey and he looked at her, not sure what to think.

"I know," Pegasus was saying, "you wouldn't think a medical technician would be necessary for a group of card players, but ever since the advent of hologram technology for dueling, the game has gotten so _physical._ Miss Wheeler, I am hoping that you will consider taking the position. I don't know about you, but I would very much like to know more about your ability to sense when someone is in the Shadow Realm and your ability to bring people out of it."

"I would, too," Serenity nodded eagerly.

"We will arrange for you to have more EMT training, which you can complete over the summer in Japan if you wish…."

Joey shook his head as Pegasus went on. "Wait a minute," he interrupted, and Serenity shot him a withering look. "Now just hold on, Serenity, before you get all excited about this. You're not gonna quit college for this, are you? 'Cause I don't know how you're gonna afford college at a California school as an international student. Do you have any idea how expensive tuition is?"

"Oh, silly me," Pegasus cut in. "Did I forget to mention that every position I described comes with a full ride scholarship to the San Francisco bay area university of choice?"

Joey's jaw went slack. "_Full _ride?"

"Full ride," Pegasus confirmed. "And despite the lateness of the year, I can arrange admittance to the fall term of any university in the area for which you qualify. That goes for all of you. But, like I said, I don't expect any of you to answer now. Take some time to talk it over amongst yourselves." He indicated a folder lying on the coffee table in the middle of the room. "All of the contracts are there if you wish to read them or have a lawyer look them over. Professor Hawkins, I'm sure you have access to legal counsel who can help in that regard. Details about pay, benefits, housing accommodations, all that, can also be found in the folders. Oh, and if anyone who is scheduled to fly out today and would like to make new arrangements so you can have a few days to think over your decision, Industrial Illusions will be happy to take care of that for you as well.

"So. Think it over, Shadow Duelists, and let me know what you decide. In the meantime, please help yourselves to more food." Then without waiting for anyone else to say anything more to him, Pegasus left the room through the same side door from which he'd entered, Croquet on his heels.


	4. Together

**4. Together**

"Well, that was entertaining," Kaiba said with disdain. "I'll leave you dweebs to decide whether or not to bite on Pegasus's bait. I've got a company to run that I've been away from too long already. Come on, Mokuba."

"Hold on, Seto," Mokuba replied. He made a hasty plan to come back to the hotel to see Rebecca later before trotting out after his brother, leaving the rest of the group alone in the suite with Yugi's and Rebecca's grandfathers.

They all sat in stunned silence a moment. Was it possible that Pegasus had really just handed them everything they wanted? Mai tried to absorb what he'd just said. A job offer for Serenity along with a _full ride scholarship _to one of the area universities. In one move Pegasus had just erased all of the issues that was holding Joey back from staying in San Francisco.

Serenity was the first to recover. "Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but sign me up," she said, rising from her seat and reaching toward the folder with the contracts.

"Now hold on a minute," Joey jumped up and snatched the folder up before Serenity could get to it. "You can't just sign a contract just like that," he said, and Mai's heart sunk. _He didn't mean it! He doesn't really want to stay._

"Watch me," she said coldly as she tried to grab the folder away from him, but he held it out of her reach.

"Serenity. Don't do this just for me."

Mai didn't want to hear anymore. _Damn him! Why did I believe him? _Abruptly she stood up, intending to walk out of the suite, but Serenity's next words stopped her.

"Oh my God, Joey!" Serenity exploded. "What is _wrong_ with you? Are you _afraid_ to be happy?"

Mai turned back to see Joey's reaction, but his back was to her.

"Don't be stupid!" he shot back. "I just don't want you getting into something just because you think you have to for me."

"You're the one being stupid! First of all, it's about time you stopped getting the short end of the stick for me. You deserve better than that, Joey. You deserve your own life. You deserve to have what _you_ want. And second of all, what part of this do you think I _wouldn't_ want? To be here, with all of our friends, to fight this jerk who did this to us, and to be where I can figure out exactly what my connection is to the Shadow Realm and the Mystical Elf and all of that? I'm not seeing the downside for me here. So do what you want, but I'm signing."

"This is really what you want?" Joey asked.

"_Duh!"_ she snapped impatiently.

"Joey, what do _you_ want?" Mai asked.

He spun to face her and as soon as his eyes met hers he gave her a broad smile, then laughed. "Are you kidding? Sign me up!"

Serenity squealed in delight and launched herself at her brother, throwing his arms around his neck and almost knocking him over in the process. "We're moving to San Francisco!"

Joey staggered under his sister's weight and struggled to regain his balance. "So does this mean you're speaking to me again?"

For Mai, it took a moment to sink in. "Really? You really wanna stay?"

"To quote my sister, _'duh!'"_

Relief flooded her as it finally hit home: he was going to stay. Well, not stay—he'd obviously have to go back to Domino first—but instead of being separated indefinitely, he'd be gone for three months at the most. _Three months._

Joey finally managed to get a very excited Serenity off of him, but before he could do anything else, Yugi's grandfather stood up and seized the folder out of his hand. "Not so fast!"

"Hey!" Joey cried in protest.

"Now you young people need to hold on a moment," Mr. Mutou scolded. "It all _sounds _good, but you haven't even looked at the contracts and, well, our dealings with Mr. Pegasus haven't always been positive."

"Solomon's right," Professor Hawkins put in. "I spoke with a contract attorney as soon as I first heard about this job offer for the top duelists after you all got back to San Francisco. I had a feeling Seto Kaiba would decline and that Rebecca would be next in line and I wanted to make sure everything was above board before I consented. We can fax him the contracts from the hotel's business center and he can let us know if there's anything worrisome there before anyone signs."

"Unless I have to sell my soul, I'm signing," Joey said firmly, then paused. "On second thought, I could see Pegasus having something in a contract about selling your soul. Maybe Gramps and the professor are right. We can wait a little while longer. Pegasus did say he'd get us new flights if we needed some time to decide, right?" He smiled at Mai and she realized that not only was he coming back in three months, he wasn't going to be leaving quite so soon after all. Her mind was already whirring with plans for the evening.

"Oh, that's right!" Serenity cried, suddenly remembering she was supposed to be leaving for the airport very soon. "I'd better go tell Mom we're not gonna make this flight," she said.

"Better you than me," Joey nodded. "Just make sure you tell her it's not my fault."

"I'll take all the blame," she cried over her shoulder at him as she dashed out of the suite.

"You kids stay here while Arthur and I go fax his lawyer," Mr. Mutou suggested, then the two older men filed out behind Serenity.

"So the rest of you are being awfully quiet. Are Serenity and I the only ones who are gonna do this or what? Assuming everything checks out with Hawkins's lawyer, of course."

"I'm in," Mai said, stepping up beside Joey. He threw his arm around her shoulders and squeezed her to him in a half hug.

"I was already planning on accepting," Yugi said. He looked at Téa and there was no mistaking the hope in his eyes. "How about you?"

"Are you kidding?" Téa snorted. "Like Serenity said, what part of this wouldn't I want?"

Yugi's face lit up like a kid on Christmas morning and Mai would have laughed if she weren't painfully aware that she'd probably had the exact same expression when Joey had said he wanted the job.

"What about you, Tristan?" Joey asked.

"Well, let's think about this," Tristan said, holding his hands out before him as if he were weighing his options on a scale. "Army, civilian. Barracks, penthouse apartment. Hanging with a bunch of soldiers or my best friends. Hmmm, tough call."

"Well I'm definitely doing it, if Grandpa doesn't get all weird about it," Rebecca stated. "I can't believe I'm a college graduate and still can't make my own decisions," she grumbled petulantly.

Duke clapped his hands together. "So then it's official? As long as the contracts look good, you all are gonna move to San Francisco?"

"I guess we are," Yugi said happily. "The whole gang together. This is just so awesome!"

"You said it, Yuge," Joey agreed, squeezing Mai to him again.

She leaned into him. "We should go celebrate," she said, her voice low and suggestive.

Joey's eyes widened. "Yeah, that would be good," he practically drooled. "But first, I need to get me some of that buffet. Suddenly I'm starving."

**

* * *

**

Professor Hawkins's lawyer said he would call later that evening to let them know what he thought of the contracts, so they agreed to meet in the hotel restaurant for dinner to make their final decision. In the meantime, Yugi's grandfather gave each of them their own contract to look over, along with other information about the jobs that Pegasus had left in the folder so long as each of them promised not to sign until they'd heard from the lawyer. Then they went their separate ways. Once Serenity returned from a protracted argument with her mother over delaying hers and Joey's return to Japan, Duke and Tristan fought over who would show her around town (Duke won because he lived there and had a car, but he ended up taking both Serenity and Tristan). Joey and Mai disappeared, probably to Mai's room, Téa guessed. Mokuba returned to the hotel with an invitation for Rebecca and Professor Hawkins to visit Kaiba Land again. That left her and Yugi with his grandfather and for a moment it looked like they'd end up doing something with him, but he begged off, saying he wanted to help Professor Hawkins chaperone Rebecca, then with all the subtlety of Godzilla attacking Tokyo asked Yugi with a nudge and a wink if that was all right with him. Yugi, naturally, blushed furiously.

Finally, Téa found herself alone with Yugi in her room. The door had no sooner closed behind them when she flung herself on his neck.

"I can't believe we're not going to have to be apart for a year!" she cried blissfully into his shoulder.

"I know," he said, squeezing her tightly. "It's almost too good to be true." He pulled back and held out the contracts and job descriptions his grandfather had given him. "I mean, have you looked at this stuff? We each get a penthouse apartment in San Francisco, access to cards, access to the latest hologram technology from Kaiba Corp, company cars, medical benefits, full ride scholarships, travel to tournaments and promotional tours."

She looked at the papers with him. Her job description was part-time and fairly basic, allowing plenty of time for her to go to school, at least when she wouldn't be traveling with the duelists. Despite being part-time, she still would get all the same benefits as the duelists. It _was _almost too good to be true.

"It's all pretty great, but the only thing I care about is that we're together."

He nodded. "Yeah, me too. I just hope Pegasus is really on the level and there's nothing shady going on."

She sighed. "Don't even go there. This is going to be a good thing, I can just feel it. We're all going to be together again and we're going to make a difference."

He gave her an apprehensive look. "It'll be dangerous," he cautioned.

She nodded, sobering slightly. "Are you still worried?" She left the question as to what specifically might worry him unspoken.

He shrugged. "Yeah, I'm worried. But Pegasus is right; we won't be any safer by staying away."

"And we'd be miserable. Or at least I would be."

"You know I would be too. I don't ever wanna be without you."

She kissed him, drinking him in along with the reality that after only three more months of separation, they'd be together again. "I love you, Yugi."

"I love you, too." And as he pulled her closer and their kiss intensified, the contracts and job descriptions fluttered to the floor, forgotten.

**

* * *

**

"Would you two give it a rest already? Or take it to a room or something?" Tristan groaned.

It was two days later and the eight of them stood in international terminal of San Francisco International Airport just outside of the lines to go through security. Mai and Joey were locked in a passionate good-bye kiss, and had been for what Yugi figured must have been at least several minutes. All of them but Duke and Mai had flights out within the next couple of hours, headed for Japan or Egypt or New York until August when they would all return to San Francisco. Professor Hawkins's attorney had approved the contracts and all seven of them had signed.

Tristan was flying to Okinawa to finish out his active duty, which Pegasus had arranged to end in July. He'd then return to Domino to be with his family for a couple of weeks before leaving for San Francisco.

Joey and Serenity were on their way to Domino. Serenity would withdraw from the university there and then return to Tokyo to spend the summer with her mother and enroll in paramedic training. She would meet up with Tristan, Joey, Yugi, and Téa in Tokyo when they changed planes there on their way back to San Francisco. Joey, meanwhile, would continue to live with Yugi's grandfather and work at the game store until they left.

Yugi, Téa, and Yugi's grandfather were headed for New York. Yugi and Grandpa would stay four days then return to Domino where Yugi would share his old room with Joey and help out at the store. Téa would finish her contract with the dance company in early August and then spend a week in Domino with her family before they had to leave. They'd all be back in San Francisco by the middle of August in time for Yugi, Serenity, and Téa to begin school in the fall.

Mai had already shipped her belongings from Italy to a storage facility in San Francisco before she'd left for the tournament and was planning on remaining here over the summer. She was staying with Duke for a little while—despite the dark threatening looks Joey had given him at this news—until she could find a temporary job dealing cards in one of the area casinos and then would move to an extended stay hotel somewhere nearby whatever casino she was working for.

Rebecca and Professor Hawkins were returning to Egypt for a short time to finish arrangements for their move back to Northern California. He had been in the process of packing up the rental house in Cairo when the news about the ship sinking forced him to come to San Francisco earlier than planned and he hadn't yet finished everything that needed to be done. He also had some more work to do with Ishizu investigating the thefts of all those artifacts, especially now that they knew for sure that they were connected to Ramesses and his bid to reopen the Shadow Realm. The professor and Rebecca would be back in California by the middle of June and would spend June and July at the professor's rural home a few hours southeast of San Francisco, which had been rebuilt in the three years since Dartz's gang had destroyed it. In August they'd move to the smaller home he owned in Berkeley and come September, Rebecca would split her time between staying with her grandfather in Berkeley and with the other duelists in the San Francisco penthouse, depending on the requirements of her job.

Duke was, of course, remaining in San Francisco in his same apartment; something he'd been griping about for the past two days ever since he'd realized all the rest of his friends would be living in a luxury high-rise. He and Mai were at the airport to see off the others, who had all managed to book flights within a few hours of each other. Mokuba had wanted to come, too, but Kaiba had gotten huffy about it and he'd had to settle for giving Rebecca a good-bye kiss at the hotel. It wasn't much more than a peck on the lips, but Rebecca had been walking on air ever since.

They'd headed for the International Terminal first to send off Tristan, Joey, Serenity, and the Hawkinses, after which Yugi, his grandfather, and Téa would take the AirTran shuttle to the domestic terminal for their flight to New York. As soon as they'd arrived and the five international passengers had checked in, Yugi's grandfather and Professor Hawkins had gone off to one of the gift shops to let the eight friends say good-bye to each other. They'd started exchanging hugs and when Joey got to Mai, she'd pulled him into the kiss that was still ongoing.

"You'd think they'd need to come up for air eventually," Téa grumbled.

"Oh like you should talk," Duke teased her. "If Yugi weren't going to New York with you, you'd be doing the same thing."

Yugi shook his head energetically. "In a crowded airport terminal? I don't think so."

"You didn't seem to mind the crowds on the beach when the lifeboats first landed," Duke pointed out.

"Shut up," Téa fumed.

"_Yugi's girl,"_ Duke taunted her in a childish tone, then clutched his side when she elbowed him. Yugi wasn't sure exactly what that was all about, but he sensed there was some history behind it.

Serenity rolled her eyes then eyed the lengthening lines through security. Looking from the lines to her watch, to Joey and Mai, she said, "Okay, nobody's happier they finally got together than I am, but those security lines aren't getting any shorter."

"I'm on it," Tristan told her, then grabbed Joey by the collar of his jacket. "Okay, lovebirds, time for a break. Some of us have planes to catch," he said, dragging Joey away from Mai.

"Hey!" Joey protested and while he started arguing with Tristan, Yugi turned to Rebecca to say good-bye.

"You take care, _Imouto-chan,"_ he told her, giving her a warm hug. "I'll see you in a couple of months."

"Okay," Rebecca replied, squeezing him tightly. "Thanks for… everything," she said, then she let go of him and gave a very surprised Téa a huge embrace. "And you look after him for me, okay?"

"Uh… okay," Téa stammered.

Tristan and Joey stopped arguing and joined the rest of them with Mai. Tristan and Duke both approached Serenity at the same time, then glared at each other with Joey glaring at both of them, but Mai held him back. Serenity hugged Tristan and Duke simultaneously and promised to e-mail both of them. "Oh, you don't have to worry about that girl," Mai said to Joey. "She's _evil_. More evil than I am, even."

At last they had all said their good-byes, but Yugi's and Rebecca's grandfathers hadn't returned yet so they stood huddled in a circle, not wanting to let go of each other.

"I'm so glad we're all going to be together in the fall," Serenity said, putting voice to what they all were feeling. "I know you all are really more Joey's friends than mine, but you've become really important to me, too."

"We are not more Joey's friends than yours," Téa disagreed. "You're one of us now. All eight of us, we're family. Oh!" she cried suddenly, "I just thought of something!" She pulled back from them and started rummaging through her purse until she produced a black marker.

Yugi, Joey, and Tristan immediately recognized her intention and groaned. "Not the marker again!" Joey complained.

"Yes, the marker again," Téa insisted testily. "We're eight now instead of four. We need to expand the bond, don't you think?"

Duke looked at them. "Anyone care to fill us in?"

"Put your right hands together in a circle," Téa instructed.

"Just do what she says, she's not gonna let it go until we've done it," Yugi said.

The eight friends stood in a circle and put their hands in the middle. "Not on top of each other, next to each other," Téa said. Then Téa took the marker in her left hand and drew across all eight hands.

"A smiley face?" Mai asked skeptically. "That's cute and all, but what's the point?"

"It's a symbol of our bond. Yugi, Joey, Tristan and I did this five years ago and… I don't know, I swear I could feel the bond between us, like we were forever connected. Couldn't you guys?" she asked the boys.

"Yeah, she's right," Joey grudgingly agreed, looking at the mark across the back of his hand. "The ink washed away but the friendship always stayed strong."

"And now all eight of us are bonded together the same way," Téa finished.

Yugi examined the mark on his own hand, remembering the first time Téa had put one there. At one point she had been his only friend, and then he had wished for friends on the Millennium Puzzle and soon he'd gone from one close friend to three. And now five years later, the circle was continuing to grow, and it wasn't limited to just the seven people there with him, either. There were Kaiba and Mokuba. Bakura and Marik. Ishizu. Odion. And somewhere, partly still inside of him and partly gone but never forgotten, there was Atem.

_There is only one Yugi Mutou in the world, _Atem had said, and it had sounded so lonely at the time, but even in Atem's absence, even with the responsibility of carrying on his legacy and the doubts that filled him about his ability to do so, he was never alone.

Téa slipped her hand into his. "Here come Grandpa and Professor Hawkins. I guess it's time to head out."

He smiled at her, squeezing her hand. "I'm ready. Let's go see you dance, Prima Ballerina."

"You got it, King of Games."

**

* * *

**

Joey watched out the window as the plane accelerated down the runway, pressing him and Serenity back into their seats. He could feel the rumbling beneath him as first the front wheels and then the rear wheels lifted off the tarmac and they headed skyward, leaving San Francisco behind.

He already missed Mai.

"Hey, don't be so gloomy," Serenity chided him, reading his thoughts. "It's only three months."

"Yeah, you're right." He smiled at her then settled back into his seat, trying to get comfortable for the long flight to Tokyo. He put his hands into his jacket pockets, and then frowned when he felt a piece of paper in his left pocket. The jacket was brand new and he didn't remember putting any paper there.

Pulling it out, he saw it was a piece of hotel stationary. It was folded in quarters with his name written in neat script on the outside. He recognized the handwriting immediately; after all, he'd carried a letter with the same handwriting in his wallet for three years.

Unfolding it, he read the short note inside.

_Just so you know, I love you too._  
—_M _

A smile curved on his lips as he touched the words on the page.

"What's that?" Serenity asked, leaning over and trying to see.

"Nothing," he said, quickly folding the note back up and putting it back in his pocket. "Just something to hang on to."

_-END-_


End file.
